I was met in Lima by friends and stayed with them a few days to recover from the jet lag and to see some of Lima (very hot, very noisy, very dusty). After swimming in the Atlantic Ocean the week before while working in the Western Isles, I just had to paddling in the Pacific (not surprisingly a wee bit warmer!) I was then sent on my way with reminders not to drink the water and to wary of amorous Peruvians!

After the three hours of refusing marriage proposals (that he didn't speak English and lived in Peru and that my Spanish, at that stage at least, was fairly basic sadly did not deter him!), we arrived in Moyobamba. First impressions were hot, noisy and dusty. The temperature all year round is about 30°C, 'dropping' to 15-18°C at night. The noise also never seemed to stop. Even at night, the crickets were chirruping incessantly, the dogs barking, and the roosters singing their hearts out!

I stayed with a Peruvian family, one of the church elders, his wife and adopted daughter. They had two grown-up children studying away from home, but had adopted this wee girl after her mother, belonging to a local indigenous tribe, said that she could afford to keep her. It was wonderful to just become part of that family during my time there.

As for the language, I came to conclusion that I couldn't speak it very well (and my grammar is still pretty shoddy), but I could speak it. I was amazed on my first day at the clinic being shown round and realising that we were speaking in Spanish and I understood! Actually, it sometimes helped not being able to speak it fluently: for example, when I knew what someone was saying but didn't want to understand...

La Plaza de Armas, Lima

Shanty town on the outskirts of Lima

La Plaza de Armas, Moyobamba

My new Peruvian family! (should point out that this was taken after two months in Peru - I am just going to have to accept I really am pale!)

Hooray! Lima is where I spent most of my developmental years. I know all about the marriage proposals. ;-) Actually, I never got any proposals but I did learn it was in my best interest to avoid interacting with strange men! My Peruvian friends all thought I was rude. Sigh.

And I think your pale skin comment makes me smile. I am so pale, even after nine years. I used to try and get a tan in the summers - even the slightest tan was better than my pale skin!

The weird things about the "not managing to get a tan" thing were that I have typically Scottish colouring (dark eyes, dark hair, pale skin which should be the sort of skin that burns easily but never does), I was on doxycycline for malaria prophylaxis which causes photosensitivity so makes you more prone to burn, and kept forgetting to burn sunscreen on - and I didn't even go at all pink. At best, I moved from being very pale to a slightly more health colour of pale!

The weird things about the "not managing to get a tan" thing were that I have typically Scottish colouring (dark eyes, dark hair, pale skin which should be the sort of skin that burns easily but never does), I was on doxycycline for malaria prophylaxis which causes photosensitivity so makes you more prone to burn, and kept forgetting to put sunscreen on - and I didn't even go at all pink. At best, I moved from being very pale to a slightly more health colour of pale!